tired and burnt

Well two guide camps later, I can cross off item 32 - Go camping and stay in a tent. I am VERY sunburnt (can't understand why - I lathered on the sunblock) and very tired. But we all had a great time! We got a wee bit of rain the first camp weekend, and then this weekend it was gloriously hot (thus the sunburn). I learned lots of new things about camping with Guides and really enjoyed hanging out with the girls.

Life has been a bit chaotic lately with things very busy at work, all the camping preparation and just general busyness. D has a bit of a cold, but managed to play cricket this weekend and go to the Phoenix game. (I was at camp - so D took his brother). The Phoenix drew with Sydney FC - one all. A wee bit of a disappointing finish as it was 1 - nil to us until 92 minutes - when Sydney were a awarded a penalty shot. That said, a draw is better than a loss!!

We received a package from our favourite online ratty store this weekend also. Full of new hammocks for the crew once we have finished their new cage....(not quite sure when we will have that done...). The Ratclub store has a fantastic range of rat related supplies, including an awesome range of bedding and hammocks. Its fantastic not having to visit a pet store!!

I'm off to spray my burns with after sun stuff and head to bed.. early start tomorrow....

M

labour weekend

Labour weekend seems to traditionally be a weekend of crap weather. Well not this year! Its been absolutely gorgeous. And now that summer is on the way and we've turned our clocks forward, it is 6pm and still sunny as. I love it! Roll on summer!!

I haven't posted for a wee while for a few reasons. Firstly, I got struck down with the flu and it was horrible horrible. I was very tired, grouchy, and snotty. I also started my new job (at the same time as getting the flu) so I have been very busy busy at work. I also now go to Guides twice a week, once to my training unit and once to my permanent unit. Still, no excuse not to blog. And especially no excuse to ignore my 101 list. It will be April 2010 before I know it and I really really wanna complete this list.

So for the tiny amount of people who actually read my blog, apologies. Lots of updates to come :)

Another birthday has been and gone so a bit belated:

Happy Birthday Ron aka Father-in-Law!

We went to the in-laws on Saturday for lunch and cake. D and I made a train cake!! I've always wanted to make one. Sadly, I didn't get any really good photos of the cake. It turned out HUGE at 1 metre long. D and I had a blast making it and Ron seemed to really like it. I'm sure they will be eating cake for a week! I think next time we make this, we might just do the engine!

Each carriage has different cargo. One has mini marshmallows, one has fruit jellies, and one has oreo 'wheels'. Our niece Abby loved it.

Ron is really into model trains and the family put together to get him some new trains for his railway track.

It seems D and I have become the birthday cake makers of the family. Its D's sisters birthday next so we have a special cake in store for her!





After the birthday celebrations we visited my dad and his family. Dad cooked a lovely roast beef (which admittedly I didn't eat much of - too full of cake!). D and I watched 'Toy Story 2' with our cute little nephews Latrell and Lazereth.

D and I in our Phoenix gears

D and I being the staunch Phoenix supporters that we are, headed off to the game last night against the Central Coast Mariners. Unfortunately it was a loss, but still a really good game. The Mariners are at the top of the table and we definitely game them a run for their money. It was one all at full time and then the Mariners scored a second goal in overtime. I have my reservations about the yellow card happy ref and his decisions (or lack of). At the end of the day, it was the Phoenix's defence that let us down. One of the goals was literally walked in by the Mariners' player. All that said, they are our team and we love them. (And Perth lost this weekend so we aren't bottom of the table!!).

gorgeous weather for the football

It has been a weekend of football, D and I headed to our nearby park and kicked a ball around for an hour or so in the sun today. We really enjoyed ourselves and plan to do it on a regular basis. D is playing his indoor football game at the moment (I'm supposed to be preparing dinner...)

Speaking of food, I only have one bento to post. We've been quiet slack these past weeks and really need to get back into the swing of things. Maybe this week can be the first week of my regular posting of bento! (Item# 87 on my 101 list)

mini meat patties (made+ frozen specially for bento), mini vege fritatta, toast onigiri, cucumber flowers, laughing cow cheese wedge, and wine gum lollies to fill the gap.
lime flavoured jelly, mandarin slices, and tamarillo.
peanuts and raisins, and some durian chips.
citrus herbal tea and an instant miso

M

go the 'nix!!!

Today Wellington Phoenix FC played Perth Glory FC and won!!! Our first home win and it was an awesome game!! Score was 4-1 ! I am still bouncing from the excitement.

We had a bit of rain at the start but the crowd screamed and yelled and kept warm. Perth scored first early in the game while our defense were no where to be seen. The next four goals were ours and the crowd went nuts.

The Yellow Fever crew were going crazy and had their shirts off and swinging around their heads in the last 15min. It must have been FREEZING!!

All in all, a fantastic game - on my feet for most of it as usual!

Go the 'nix!

farewell winter

pretty daffodil in nelson

Once again, I have soo much to update and no time! I guess it is really a good sign as it means I actually have a life!

Nelson was great, it was good to catch up with friends and family. One thing I could not get over was how visually obvious it was that spring had well and truly arrived in Nelson! There were blossoms everywhere, including these daffodils on the side of the road:

There are also magnolia trees planted all over town and they are just beautiful in the spring. I took LOTS of photos of blossomy springness so hopefully I can do a nice big gardeny post soon.

D and I have been very excited about the Wellington Phoenix! (Our brand new local football team!) We have been to 2 of the 3 home games so far with another one this weekend. We both love football and really enjoy jumping up and down screaming our lungs out.

It seems the referees in the series are very bias - the crowd actually booed the refs off the field on Saturday. (which was kind of ironic as it was supposed to be a "fair play" match.)

Hopefully the Phoenix work and play hard and do well this season. The prior NZ teams in the series (the Kingz and the Knights) both sucked big time and never made it further than the bottom of the table. The Phoenix are doing pretty well and there have been some VERY close games.

I have been raving about wanting to make bento lunches for D and I. Well I'm finally doing it!

BENTO #1
boiled egg, sliced cucumber flowers and mini tomatoes
sliced tamarillo, green grapes and a small lime jelly
heart shaped rice onigiri, cheese+ham on sticks, more cucumber flowers and star shaped cheese


BENTO #2
banana+pineapple on sticks and sliced tamarillo
bed of rice with furikake and nori flowers
peanuts, lime jelly, wedge cheese, sliced crab stick, cucumber flowers, boiled egg, corn on cob and some lollies for D. (mine had marshmallows)

Its official, I am addicted to bento-ing. Luckily for my wallet, there aren't many places around NZ (especially wellington) that sell bento boxes and accessories. D is loving it as it is a guaranteed packed lunch each day.

(goodness this is a mammoth post...)

Last but not least, I managed to cross off number 38 on my 101 list. D and I went for a fantastic picnic yesterday. Originally planned as a sunrise breakfast (but we couldn't haul ourselves out of bed) we instead heading up to Raumati Beach. It was a gorgeous day, and felt like Nelson in the summertime.

It was so relaxing and so good to spend such quality time together (with my husband!!). We had a lovely drive up, listening to a special mix CD made for us by Sconey - "music to be in love to".

anyways... bed is calling...

M

crochet, crochet, crochet

I took these photos of a few of the amazing crochet patterns in the crochet pattern set that Sconey and I managed to score at a Garage Sale in the weekend. I just love the little hooded jacket - I wish I could make myself one! The 'father and son matching hat & scarf set' is absolutely adorable. And what can I say about 'tommy the turtle'!! The little fruit appliqués are quite cool too. There are also quite a few hideous patterns that belong in the 70s and should NEVER be made again.

Hopefully I'll find some inspiration to crochet something and FINALLY learn to crochet!

I read 'Lullaby' by Chuck Palahniuk last night. It was really good. Disturbing but good. Chuck was the guy who wrote 'Fight Club' (you've probably seen the movie). So thanks Sconey for recommending it. I think I'll read a few more of his books! And - its another book crossed off my 101 books to read.

D started Indoor Football tonight - hopefully their team will have more luck indoors than they have had outdoors!!

impossible quiz

I recently got linked to the Impossible quiz. Apparently it is not impossible, but it sure feels like it!!

One of the easier ones - they seem to get harder as you go on...

Its basically a flash game (a very flash one too.. ;p) with 110 "questions". Some are easy, most are odd and VERY frustrating. I've managed to get to 87 however each time you lose, you have to go back to the start!!

I think I'll leave it for a while and give it another go when I have time to waste..... Let me know if you manage to crack it!

D and I are both off out tonight.... separately! I'm going out for dinner + cocktails with some work mates and D is going to his football mate's flatwarming . [Oh and they won again this weekend!! They have now won 3 games in a row! I think that means they officially don't suck!!]

Furkids are feeling the cold methinks. We took all 10 of them to the vet last night to see vet man. He seemed a bit overwhelmed, it was cool. We have 3 on meds - Kaida, Wocket & Hiro. I hate it when they are sick. Ando is growing sooo much quicker than Hiro - he makes Hiro seem like a baby still.

While we were at the vet, we saw pictures of a monkey he operated on!! How often do you see a monkey at the vet? Come to think of it, last time we went, there was a hawk who'd just had his wing amputated. It seems, vet man gets some really interesting cases.

M

second win

I forgot to say, this weekend D's football team won their second game in a row! D was very excited, we are hoping it is the beginning of a winning streak!

M